New York Times bestselling author. Slow cooking expert.

Carnitas are a fun, Mexican dish that has a great tangy flavor. Traditionally it is slow roasted pork seasoned with citrus flavors and then topped with your favorite toppings. Using the crockpot slow cooker to slow roast the meat provides a slow steady heat which causes the pork to nicely fall apart all on it's own without needing lots of liquid.[originally posted in 2010.]Hello there! I have exciting news!

This news is probably more exciting to me than to you, but trust me---it's exciting nevertheless.

And I'm pretty sure you will never guess what my news is.

nope. that's not it.

nope. it's not that either!

My super duper exciting news is that somehow I don't seem to be allergic to pork anymore. I have no idea how it happened, but I started sneaking *real* bacon here and there at restaurants when I was pregnant, and then I got kind of gutsy and had *real* baby back ribs, and then all of a sudden I was eating pulled pork and ham.

Use a 6 quart slow cooker. In a small bowl, combine the salt and cumin. Rub mixture all over the pork, then plop into the slow cooker. Add whole garlic cloves. Squeeze on the citrus, and pour the beef broth evenly over the top.

Cook on low for 8-10 hours, or until the pork shreds quite easily with a fork. If your meat is still fully intact after 8 hours, remove and cut into chunks, then return to the crock and flip to high for about an hour or two.Shred meat fully and serve on warmed corn tortillas with desired toppings.

The Verdict.

This is so totally good. I adored the citrusy flavor of the meat, and the slight smokiness from the cumin. If you don't eat pork, try using an inexpensive beef chuck roast instead of the pork shoulder. Adam and the girls all liked their dinner, and I'm so beyond thrilled that due to some bizarre fluke of nature I can eat pork again.

113 comments:

I've heard that one can spontaneously develop--and recover from--allergies at any point during one's adult life. And the hormone storms of pregnancy are held responsible for many weird and wonderful things. So why not this too? Congratulations!

Oh, YAY, I'm so happy for you! We actually had our favorite slow cooker pork roast tonight and as I took the first bite I said to my husband, THIS is why I'm not a vegetarian.I will make this next. So excited. (And try my roast, too, it's on my blog and it's so so easy and so so good and adaptable!)

It's amazing what pregnancy does to our bodies! My ENTIRE life I was allergic to nuts (mainly pecans, walnuts, almonds to name a few) while I was pregnant I just couldn't resist my sister's homemade turtles, and was SO shocked when my tongue and throat didn't itch like crazy afterwards. So I tried another, and another and another, and now I can have all the nuts my heart desires. CRAZY! Anyway, these look SO good! I'm going to have to try them this week!

I'm so glad you can eat pork. This looks so yummy I can't wait to try it. My go to recipe for pork is a giant pork shoulder, 1-2 tbl of liquid smoke, 1-2 tbl of red Hawaiian rock salt...cook on low for up to 16 hours. Remove giant globs of fat when it's done. Shred and enjoy in your favorite recipe. I like it just shredded with rice (like pork kalua), mixed with BBQ sauce on a bun (GF of course), or crisped up in a skillet with some green chilies and served in corn tortillas as tacos, or enchiladas.

I have so many food allergies. Newest one seems to be wheat gluten so I'm so thankful I found your website and was already familiar with GF cooking! I am also allergic to melons, mangos, peaches, asian pears, apricots...it's awful! My sister used to be allergic to milk, but after years of avoiding it, she tried it once again and she's ok with it. Maybe your body is "cleansed" and has a tolerance to it now? Hopefully it's something that doesn't come back!

OMG! I have spent the last two weeks looking for this recipe. I told my wife that I thought it was made with beef and that's what we made it with. It turned out okay, but I had my heart set on something a little different; this was it. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I can't wait to get home next month and try this. BTW, keep up the great work!

lol i LOVE pork and when i was pregnant with my 20 YO i developed a really bad allergy to it still can't eat it, but neither can he so i guess that's fair, some time i try to sneak some and let me tell you i pay for that one little bite so yea pregnancy does some really weird thongs to you

Hooray for you! No one should have to miss out on the goodness of pork. (Okay, well, I realize there are certain beliefs and religions that disallow pork, so...no one should have to miss out on the goodness of pork unless they want to.) Anyway, this sounds REALLY good!

As a young adult I developed an allergy to cow's milk. Not a lactose intolerance, a true allergy that left me, well, you don't need details. When I met my now husband, he was such a trooper to alter his dairy ways so we could eat together. His sister actually said "You can't do cow's milk? No problem! I'll make lasagna!" When we eventually had a child and she thankfully didn't have a milk allergy, I tried feeding her yogurt - from your crockpot yogurt recipe. Once I tried it by liking the spoon - thinking I was in for a world of hurt. But nothing. Then slowly my husband convinced me to try more cow's milk products. Nothing! No reaction whatsoever. Apparently the pregnancy changed me in more ways than I thought. =) Now we are a cheesy, cow's milk indulging family. I do wonder what it's done to my cholesterol count. :/

I'm going to try this for sure BUT I'm still so much on the crockpot YOGURT kick that I just can't stop making it (and eating it!). I love, love, love it--I even got a bit of cream cheese in the bottom of the bowl as I got down to the last scoop. I'm crying it's so good.

Most envious of the spontaneous allergy cure. I don't think it would be a good idea for me to get pregnant to see if it cures *my* pork allergy, but I've been getting these odd feelings lately that if I tried organically raised pork, free of antibiotics and hormones, it might just be okay. Planning on buying, feeding most of it to the man, and trying a bite or two in the safety of my own home.

My mom tried some of her own homeraised pork and no reaction! She still can't tolerate pork in restaurants or bought from a store, but she enjoyed the pork so much she is going to buy some more piglets this summer:D

The picture of this recipe kept popping up on my blog (I have a link to you on my favorites list!) I just had to hop over and check out the recipe. With spring sports season just around the corner for us Texans, I know I'll be needing lots of great slow cooker recipes and this one looks like a must try! And yay for you on your "cured" pork allergy!

I was allergic to chicken for YEARS. I ate some in something by accident one day and had no ill effects, then ate a Chik Fil A chicken biscuit one morning for breakfast, and no ill effects. I can certainly understand how happy you are.

Congrats on the pork! And I just wanted to say thanks for doing this!! My fiancee was diagnosed with Celiac Disease a few years ago so he's been gluten free for quite a while, so I had been lightly following your blog for a while... but then I did a lot of research and decided it would be better for him if I became gluten free too, and wow, the food is so awful sometimes! I am really glad you have this blog so I can have something ready for me when I get home from work instead of trying to whip up something disgusting from the store!

I made this tonight with the only change being I used a pork butt instead of shoulder since my market didn't have it. It was delicious and just fell apart!! It was also a very good recipe for my husband to have since he can't eat typical spicy Mexican food because of reflux. So this was awesome b/c it had the subtle cumin flavor but not a ton of spice to it! Thanks so much!

Yum I'm gonna try your carnitas next time I'm in the mood. We usually use a can of pepsi, oj concentrate, cilantro, onion, jalapeno and pork butt. Glad to hear you are no longer allergic to pork, it is after all the other white meat.

You've got some great recipes on your blog. Since I'm vegan I won't be trying this one but I'm making the Moroccan Lentil Soup today. Thx for all the great ideas for using my slow cooker. I especially love to do so in the cold winter months.

I made this recipe tonight and it's divine. I didn't have OJ handy so I used up some clementines I had to equal the amount of juice called for in the recipe. Nothing is more exciting that coming home to the amazing smell of this dish. It's a keeper and I've shared the link of this recipe on my Facebook page. I love your blog and can't wait to try more recipes!

I love carnitas. DH makes them on the stove. I am going to try this and shock him! He is the cook of the family, but I tried your Asian short ribs and he liked them. Anytime I cook something he likes it is a really exciting time for me!

Glad you can eat pork. My OD was allergic to cow's milk when she was young and we got a goat and milked her. Thank goodness she got over it!

I can't wait to try this. Sounds delightful. We are sorely deprived of good South of the Border treats here in Yankee territory so who knows who might show up at the table once they smell this cooking all day.

My sister has TONS of allergies and says that's the worst part of it all....the are known to change.

I made these on Sunday and they were very good! I'm from a border town so I know mexican food. These are obviously much healthier than traditional carnitas, but still quite tasty. I like this site, and your cookbook - I use my slow cookers a lot more now.

I made these on Saturday for my Dad's birthday and my family went absolutely gaga for them! One tip: My roast gave off a lot of liquid in the cooking process so I had to drain it off, put the meat in a 13x9 and stick it in a warm oven to dry it out a little so it wasn't too drippy for tacos!

I made this a couple nights ago, and we used it for tacos! It was a huge hit. I'm on a diet, so I had it over brown rice with the tomatoes and cilantro.I will be making tamales as per your other recipe, and using this for the filling in a couple days. Can't wait! Thanks for sharing all of this!!! :)

I LOVE your website! My fiancee and I just got a slow cooker a few months ago and visit your site at least once a week for a new recipe. I am happy to say that they are all great!

My favorite so far is the lentil stew with chicken...we went for it because it looked pretty healthy and we needed to detox after a weekend of too much food and wine. Not only was the dish healthy but it was incredibly tasty.

I made this recipe a few weeks ago and it turned out awesome (definitely satisfied my craving for Chipotle) I used frozen pork and about half a can of frozen orange juice concentrate instead of the fresh orange juice.Congrats on the not being allergic to pork any more!

Yep!! A new favorite around here! My daughters are allergic to wheat/gluten, dairy and soy and we can make this recipe and chow it down. I'm even making it for friends... it's gotta be good if you're willing to make it up and share with others!

I have had this recipe on my mind since you posted it. I finally made it for lunch today and it got rave reviews! One son wondered where the black beans were, so will maybe add some for the next time. I put my pork roasts in the crock pot last night and often got a good wift of the smell in the night. My DIL and husband both enjoyed the early a.m. smell! I'm sure my "planned overs" will be enjoyed as much as the originals were enjoyed today. Thanks

When my husband was a small child, he developed a milk allergy. The allergist told my MIL not to give him ANY milk or milk products for 2 whole years. She was devout, not even crackers that contained whey would pass through his lips. After 2 years, they slowly introduced milk into his diet, and now he's totally fine. I'm glad that you can have pork now. Ahh, the yummy bacon cheeseburgers, and pork reasts to follow!

Okay, after months of reading your blog, and months of having this recipe bookmarked I finally took my slow cooker out for a spin for the first time.

My thoughts? "WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN ALL MY LIFE, SLOW COOKER?!" I did not have enough cumin for the rub, so I added a little cinnamon and cardamom. The results were so delicious, even my husband (who is very picky and usually will not eat pork, unless it is bacon) loved it! Thank you for sharing! I will make this again!

This week I made this carnitas recipe for the 5th or 6th time since you posted it - it's quickly becoming a staple in our household. Not only is it delicious, but really versatile - fantastic in burritos or rice bowls, or with eggs, or in sandwiches, or cold in a salad, or just gobbled up straight. Thanks for sharing it!

I read your blog regarding ridding yourself of your allergy to pork. This excited me to hear because it is more evidence that the law of attraction is as obvious as the law of gravity. We can make ourselves sick and we can keep ourselves from being sick. It is all about the thoughts we create and meditate on. Read THE SECRET! You are what you make yourself to be! Congrats! God Bless You!

I love making pork in the crockpot, and I have made it MANY different ways over the years.

This recipe, however, was the absolute BEST I have ever eaten! My husband and I just finished our carnitas tacos dinner (soft whole wheat taco shells, salsa fresca, sour cream, and a little sour cream), and we could not stop talking about how delicious the pork was.

I HIGHLY recommend this recipe - it will be my go-to crockpot pork recipe from now on.....

Thanks so much for helping my family eat more healthy, and more cost-saving, meals!

I made this on Saturday and it was DELISH!!! Excellent flavors - juicy pork, we had it in flour tortillas and corn tortillas and on crusty bread...with diced avocado, tomatoe and cilantro...YUMMMMEEE...this will be on future meal plans for SURE - thanks so much for the recipe!!!!

This made the best carnitas we have ever eaten. The lime and orange juice added a lovely citrus flavor and kept the meat moist through several days of leftovers. We served with brown rice, black beans, and the usual taco toppings of cheese, salsa, avocado, and sour cream. This will be in our regular recipe rotation.

I use this site regularly for weeknight, and some weekend meals, and have been thrilled with how most came out. Unfortunately, while this meat was tender I found that it lacked flavor. When I reheated it a day later I simmered it with some salsa verde to bring it to life, but I would file this one under flop.

So tired of pizza on Saturday nights so I made the carnitas recipe instead! Oh my goodness. I served this with guacamole and chips, GF hard shells, and my family really enjoyed this recipe. Thank you, Stephanie!

We are LOVING this recipe. I've made it several times and we just can't get enough. I wondered if you thought using veggie broth (homemade) instead of beef broth would make a huge difference - would that just be a major mistake? Should I go ahead and just make the beef broth and hold off on the carnitas for a few days while I make the broth??

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